Footnote: The foreign-born parent population includes parents who are naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, temporary migrants, humanitarian migrants, and unauthorized migrants. Data are displayed for geographies with at least 65,000 people based on 2014 population estimates. These estimates are based on a survey of the population and are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. LNE (Low Number Event) refers to estimates that have been suppressed because the margin of error was greater than 5 percentage points. N/A means that data are not available.

Learn More About Immigrants

Measures of Immigrants on Kidsdata.org

On kidsdata.org, measures related to immigrant populations include the following: percentage of children living in "linguistically isolated" households (i.e., children in households without someone age 14 or older who speaks English "very well"), percentage of children ages 0-17 living with one or more foreign-born parent, and percentage of the population that is foreign-born, by age group. These data are estimates based on the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS). Data are available for:

Cities, school districts, and counties with 65,000+ residents, as single-year estimates;

Cities, school districts, and counties with 20,000+ residents, as 3-year estimates;

Cities, school districts, and counties with 10,000+ residents, as 5-year estimates; and/or

Children in immigrant families, including children who are foreign born or who live with at least one foreign-born parent, represent the fastest growing segment of the U.S. child population (1). In 2014, this group accounted for 25% of all children in the United States (2). This population is particularly large in California, where the proportion of foreign-born residents is the highest in the country (2, 3).

Children in immigrant families are more likely than other children to have household incomes below the Federal Poverty Level, to have parents with low educational attainment, to live in language-isolated households, and to be in fair or poor physical health (1). It is therefore important for schools, health care systems, government and nonprofit organizations to address the needs of these children, and work to eliminate barriers to service. Also, foreign-born women tend to have a higher fertility rate than women born in the U.S., making increases in this population especially germane to providers of perinatal service and services to young children (4).

It should be noted that today's immigrant children vary more by national origin and socioeconomic status than in previous years (5). The educational and health status of this population varies widely depending on many factors, such as the country of origin and length of time in the U.S. (6, 7).

For more information on this topic please see kidsdata.org's Research & Links section.

According to 2014 estimates, 49% of California children ages 0-17 live with one or more foreign-born parents. This percentage
has been relatively steady since 2007, though figures vary widely among California counties. For example, an estimated 63% of children in Santa Clara County had foreign-born parents, compared to 7% in Amador County in 2009-2013.

In 2014, an estimated 10% of California children lived in "linguistically isolated" households (i.e., households in which no person age 14 or older speaks English "very well"). This figure has decreased slightly in recent years, from 15% in 2007. The percentage of children living in linguistically isolated households varies greatly at the county level, from 1% to 23% in 2009-2013.

An estimated 6% of California children ages 5-17 were born outside the U.S. in 2014. The figure is lower for young children ages 0-4 (2%). An estimated 15% of adults ages 18-24 and 38% ages 25-64 were born outside of the U.S. Between 2007 and 2014, the statewide percentage of immigrant children and youth ages 0-24 declined slightly, figures for adults ages 25 to 64 remained fairly steady, and figures for Californians ages 65 and older increased slightly.

Policy Implications

Children of immigrants are more likely to be low-income than children of native-born parents (1). Immigrant children, particularly those in low-income households, often confront hardships in accessing health care, safety-net public benefits, and quality education (2, 3, 4). In 2013, California passed immigration reform to target these disparities in immigrant families, supporting better outcomes for children (5). California offers some benefits to undocumented immigrant children that would not be available under federal law, including Medi-Cal, post-secondary financial aid, and domestic worker protections for their parents (5, 6). However, enforcement of other immigration regulations can have a negative effect on children. For example, the deportation of a parent or legal caregiver can cause family instability and economic hardship, and can exacerbate mental health problems (7, 8). New considerations of parental rights will ensure the unnecessary disruption of those rights and encourage parental stability for children (9). Additionally, the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has been viewed as important temporary relief from deportation, expanding the socioeconomic mobility and trajectories for these DACA-eligible youth (10).

According to research and subject experts, policies that could influence the well being of immigrant children include:

Ensuring that federal immigration reform is comprehensive and includes more efficient pathways to citizenship and other legal statutes that promote family unity. These may include providing basic support and child welfare services to immigrant children (2, 3, 7)